FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – With the postseason picture still yet to fully pan out, Nova Southeastern welcomes Florida Southern for a crucial three-game series set to open this Friday at 6 p.m. ET at the NSU Baseball Complex.
 
The top seven teams within the south region will receive bids to the NCAA Tournament, scheduled to be announced on Sunday, May 14, with three of those handed out to the automatic qualifiers in the Sunshine State Conference as well as the Gulf South Conference (GSC) and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). As of Wednesday's first official regional rankings, the Sharks currently sit in fourth, ahead of both North Alabama and West Alabama. Meanwhile, their weekend counterpart enters the first poll slotted in third, trailing only Delta State and Tampa.
 
So with plenty left yet to be determined, a series victory could positively shift the postseason fate for a Nova Southeastern club that has beaten the Moccasins in five of the previous six meetings, including a series sweep the last time both clubs met in Fort Lauderdale back in 2015.
 
Florida Southern has set the standard in the SSC in the pitching department, posting a collective 3.65 earned run average through the first 40 games. However, the Mocs were tagged for 27 runs in their series loss against Tampa – not to mention, Nova Southeastern's lineup appears to be clicking at the right time.
 
"This is the time of the year that you have to get hot," said head coach Greg Brown. "I think we're special if we can put it all together in all three phases."
 
Just this past weekend, the Sharks capped a series sweep of Embry-Riddle by mashing a total of nine home runs by eight different players. The only starter not to homer versus the Eagles was shortstop Dylan Woods, who still managed to rack up a .500 batting average to go along with four RBI's and six runs scored. Jeremy Vasquez was responsible for two of those dingers, moving into a tie for second in the SSC home run race, while a Brandon Gomez two-run blast pulled him even with J.D. Martinez atop the program's all-time career home run mark. Perhaps the most notable performance of the weekend, though, belonged to lead-off batter Jancarlos Cintron. The Nova Southeastern second baseman tied a Sharks' single-game record with six hits in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader, including his seventh round-tripper of the season, to help the Sharks hang 20-plus hits on the Eagles for the second time in three games over the weekend.
 
While the offensive numbers jump out, the Nova Southeastern pitching staff has molded into late-season form as well. Since Brown added Derik Beauprez and Jonny Ortiz to the starting rotation in place of Joe DiBenedetto and Devin Meyer, the Sharks have registered a 3.08 team ERA as opposed to a 5.17 ERA through their first 33 games. Both Beauprez and Ortiz have each yet to be handed a loss in their combined six starts. Furthermore, DiBenedetto appears much more comfortable in his new role, allowing just one unearned run in 6.1 innings since the switch.
 
Dual-threat player Logan Browning has been a key piece for the Mocs, who are searching for their first postseason appearance since 2014. The lefty currently owns a .376 average at the plate, while posting a 6-2 record and 3.82 ERA in 12 starts on the mound. The Sharks did, however, push across four runs in five innings against Browning a year ago.
 
For complete coverage of this weekend's action, log onto NSUSharks.com or follow the Sharks on Twitter @NSU_Baseball.